Blackmores ISO Consultancy Service: The creators of isology®

In the workplace, everyone is responsible for safety.

It’s not just for managers or senior management to worry about where legislation is concerned, everyone from the top to the bottom needs to be actively ensuring the safety of others.

ISO 45001 highlights the importance of this in its most recent iteration, which includes a specific requirement for the consultation and participation of workers. But, how does this work in practice?

Today Ian Battersby explains what consultation and participation of workers in ISO 45001 is, and how you can incorporate elements of reactive and proactive hazard reporting to meet that requirement.

You’ll learn

• What is consultation and participation of workers in ISO 45001?
• What is the identification of hazards?
• What’s the difference between reactive and proactive hazard reporting?
• Common approaches to reactive and proactive hazard reporting
• Proactive hazard reporting in action

Resources

• Isologyhub

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Join the isologyhub – To get access to a suite of ISO related tools, training and templates. Simply head on over to isologyhub.com to either sign-up or book a demo.

[02:05] Episode summary: Ian Battersby will be explaining reactive and proactive hazard reporting, and how this relates to the consultation and participation of workers (clause 5.4) requirement in ISO 45001.

[02:30] What is ‘Consultation and Participation of workers? – ISO 45001’s clause 5.4 states:

“The organization must have a process for consultation and participation of workers at all levels and functions, and their representatives in the development, planning, implementation, performance evaluation and actions for improvement of the OH&S management system.”

ISO 45001 expects occupational health and safety aspects to be fully embodied within the organisation structure. All workers should be aware of their responsibilities, and work together to meet the organisation’s health and safety goals.

Everyone is responsible for safety.

Consultation implies two-way communication, so workers can provide feedback to be considered by the organisation before taking a decision.  This is important; the organisation has to consider workers’ feedback before making decisions

Participation implies the contribution of workers, including non-managerial workers, to decision-making related to OH&S performance and to proposed changes.

[05:50] Hazard Identification – A specific issue which must be considered is the identification of hazards:

• Identifying hazards and assessing risks and opportunities (Clauses 6.1.1 and 6.1.2);
• Determining actions to eliminate hazards and reduce OH&S risks

There are numerous sources for consideration when it comes to hazards

• How work is organised
• Routine/non-routine activities
• Past incidents
• Emergency situations
• People
• Processes
• Workplace design
• Equipment
• Change

 [07:35] What’s the difference between proactive and reactive hazard reporting? – Proactive is about spotting hazards in advance and putting in place measures to minimise the chances of them materialising and causing harm (eg, through an accident)

Reactive is in response to an event which has already occurred, such as an accident; a hazard existed without being spotted already and dealt with.

[08:20] A common approach to proactive hazard reporting  – Risk Assessment.  Consider hazard sources (i.e. people, processes, equipment, workplace etc) and consider what may happen; what could go wrong.  Then consider what controls could be put in place to try and prevent that happening.

Risk assessment can help you to demonstrate worker consultation and participation by including those affected:

• Involved in or affected by an activity
• Those delivering a process
• Using equipment
• Occupying a workplace

Those people have valuable knowledge and understanding, sometimes moreso than someone in a supervisory / managerial role.

And an absolute must: recording that all employees have read, understand and are committed to the controls included in Risk Assessments; that process may also give rise to workers’ further involvement – through querying, suggesting change etc

This also helps the culture of hazard spotting and promotes engagement among the workforce, both of which are vital in driving a proactive approach

[11:10] A common approach to reactive hazard reporting: Accident reporting systems is the obvious choice. However, there are ways you can make this more proactive.

There are various levels to accident reporting. Traditional systems wait until an accident occurs before recording and acting upon it.

Some organisations also record near misses: where an event has occurred, but no harm has been caused.

This approach in itself can be very valuable; and it provides an opportunity to act before any harm has occurred.

However, we can go a step further and allow the workforce to observe what’s happening; their surroundings and listen to what they feel may present a hazard to them and their colleagues (remember, everyone is responsible for safety).

[13:00] Join the isologyhub and get access to limitless ISO resources – From as little as £99 a month, you can have unlimited access to hundreds of online training courses and achieve certification for completion of courses along the way, which will take you from learner to practitioner to leader in no time. Simply head on over to the isologyhub to sign-up or book a demo.

[15:30] Proactive hazard reporting in action: Ian recounts his experience in a previous company where their proactive hazard reporting led to meaningful change.

This took place in a large manufacturing plant, but there was also significant office-based activity as well.

Because of the nature of the work, many people would not have access to online systems so there was both online and paper systems; this is important; if everybody is responsible, everybody needs access and engagement is vital.

In addition to the traditional accident/near miss system, there was a safety observation card (all data ended up in the same database). It was simple to fill out, would have only taken about 5 minutes at most.

In an organisation of 500ish, we received 2200 observation cards per year by the time I left.

When combined with accidents/incidents, there’s a predictable cycle: more reports, poor quality, more accidents, better quality, improved actions, fewer accidents.

[17:30] Creating an observation card: It should be easy to understand and record what’s necessary, recommended content includes:

• Date / Time
• Who was involved – employee / contractor / visitor ect
• Location of hazard / incident 
• Description of hazard / incident (ideally in 10 words or less)

You could get more granular and include:

• Identification of an unsafe condition or unsafe act
• Type of hazard or incident: slip, trip or fall / exit obstructed / machinery being used unsafely / unsafe structure / not using PPE

You could also include an option for actions taken if you decide to inform a manager of the issue, if you’ve corrected someone on the use of equipment or PPE ect.

[21:15] The Importance of peer inspections:  Often they would have supervisors from one area, checking a different one. This fresh pair of eyes may offer new insight into something that you usually miss!

Note that you should also encourage any site visitors to do the same. The fact that you’d ask them to report any incident also displays that you take safety seriously, and are open to feedback to improve.  

[22:40] Hazard scoring:  In order to judge that quality, they went a step further and graded all observations from 1-3:

1. Saw something but didn’t act
2. Saw it, acted to put it safe there and then
3. Saw it, acted to prevent it happening again

This allowed them to judge how effective hazard spotting is in removing cause and filters out points-scoring.

[22:45] The results speak for themselves:

Increasing number of observations

Increasing number of participants

Increasing quality of observations

Reducing number and severity of accidents.

Over five years, they increased the number of observations per employee ten-fold.

As a result, they reduced lost time accidents over 75%

This was a superb example of a personal safety campaign and a great demonstration of consultation and participation,

It’s not difficult to do, but it needs leadership commitment, constant and clear comms, user-friendly systems and effective analysis / reporting.

If you’d like to book a demo for the isologyhub, simply contact us and we’d be happy to give you a tour.

We’d love to hear your views and comments about the ISO Show, here’s how:

• Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
• Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help and we read each one.

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ISO Standards provide a framework to help businesses manage various aspects of their activities. Whether that’s quality, risk, environmental or Information Security management, they provide invaluable guidance to establish an effective Management System.

One element that is key, no matter the Standard or subject area, is Leadership. Without this driving force, your Management System will not get the momentum it needs to truly benefit your way of working.

Today Ian Battersby will explain the integral role of leadership within the Implementation and maintenance of an ISO Management System, and how their active participation benefits the whole business.

You’ll learn

• What is Leadership?
• Where is Leadership referenced in ISO Standards?
• How do Leadership get involved with the Implementation and Management of ISO Standards?
• How does Leadership participation benefit the business?

Resources

• Isologyhub

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Join the isologyhub – To get access to a suite of ISO related tools, training and templates. Simply head on over to isologyhub.com to either sign-up or book a demo.

[02:05] Episode summary: Ian will be discussing the role of Leadership within ISO Management Systems and how their active participation can benefit the business as a whole.

[02:30] What is Leadership? – Leadership is central to success in achieving any goal in business. It involves motivating a group of people toward a common pursuit, and it certainly isn’t straightforward without leadership believing in what it’s doing.

Without showing that belief, why would the workforce sit up and take note: ‘If it’s not important to you, why should it be to me?’

[03:30] Why should Leadership get involved? – The need for leadership has been recognised by Standards bodies, hence why it’s been made central to all Management System Standards.

For many years, Management Systems were separate from the day-to-day activities of running a business, often boiled down to just a person in a room with manuals, getting through certifications and earning a nice shiny badge.But this had little to no impact on the bottom line (be honest)!

But, a well-run Management System can have huge impacts and benefits on all types of organisation, and updated ISO standards aim to deliver that impact more readily, so leadership gets its own clause (Clause 5 – Leadership)

 [05:25] Clause 5.1 Top management shall demonstrate leadership & commitment – This boils down to taking accountability for effectiveness of the system, but how do you do this?

Firstly, the system can only be effective if it is designed correctly, so leadership must ensure it fits with its context of the organisation, which is required in Clause 4.

There are ways of doing this, but we favour a SWOT and PESTLE. This is simply to ensure that those establishing context don’t do it in a vacuum, opening up the floor to get input from everyone effected by the Management System.

This is key because Senior Managers need active involvement to understand how the system works, its resource needs and its performance.

[07:25] Ensuring quality policy and objectives are established and compatible with context and strategic direction – The quality objectives must contribute to the business, so there’s a role for senior managers to ensure that they are aligned and have a measurable contribution to the business.

What measures are included in your objectives which can demonstrably show that they affect the business in some way in a good way?

That’s what senior management have to do to link quality objectives with strategic organisational business objectives.

[08:20] Ensuring integration into the organisation’s business processes – The quality objectives must contribute to the business, so there’s a role for senior managers to ensure that they are aligned and have a measurable contribution to the business.

They must ensure integration into the organisations’ business processes, which in turn must be aligned with the context. They must also be relevant to the way the organisation runs and senior management needs to oversee a system which allows processes to do that.

[05:20] Promoting use of the process approach and risk-based thinking – This requires senior management to actually do some promotion – which is stipulated as ‘Shall Promote’. For those that don’t know, whenever the word ‘Shall’ is used in an ISO Standard, that essentially means you MUST do it.

In this instance, that means actually contributing the communications and raising of Management System Awareness.

Senior Management have to be involved in the process of describing to people what’s important, why the standards are important and that risk and process are central to the organisations operations.

[09:35] Providing resources for the system – There’s a number of resources that Senior Management need to consider, including:

• People – Need to be enlisted to run a system and to operate the system throughout the organisation.
• Competence – You may need to invest in training if required.
• Expertise in the standard – Do you have expertise in-house on the Standard you’re certifying to? If not, you will have to invest in training or additional help from a third-party.
• Systems / Access and Documented Information – Do you have a place for hosting of documentation, workflows, forms? Further considerations are needed for required authorization and controlled access.
• Time – Implementing and maintaining a Management System is a big task, whether done by an individual or a team, they will need time to complete necessary Management System activities.

[10:30] Communicating the importance of an effective system and conforming to its requirements – Everyone looks up to Senior Management in regard to what their priorities are. It’s up to them to effectively communicate the importance of the Management System, it’s processes, their role in relation to the Management System and how to confirm with it’s requirements.

Key points to get across:

• How this system makes your workplace a better place.
• How it contributes to success of the organisation – I.e. happier customers, safer working conditions, ect
• How it can make their daily routine more fulfilling – i.e. having a complete picture of their place in the business, how they contribute to its success.
• What could nonconformity bring if people choose to step outside a management system? – I.e. With ISO 45001, nonconformance could risk someone getting injured.

[13:50] Engaging/directing/supporting persons to contribute to effectiveness of the system – Team managers should be harnessing the people at all levels to be able to fulfil the requirements of the Management System.

They should do that by providing clear expectations, which can be done via so communications and objective setting.

[14:30] Promoting improvement – Continual Improvement is absolutely key to every management system.

When something does go wrong, senior management must provide the resources for actively asking why things may have underperformed, so you can get to the cause of why it’s underperforming and put it right.

It’s also an opportunity to highlight when things have improved and celebrate those that contributed to that success.

[15:30] Join the isologyhub and get access to limitless ISO resources  – From as little as £99 a month, you can have unlimited access to hundreds of online training courses and achieve certification for completion of courses along the way, which will take you from learner to practitioner to leader in no time. Simply head on over to the isologyhub to sign-up or book a demo.

[17:40] Supporting other management to demonstrate leadership in their areas – Leadership drives top to bottom. Everybody can have a role in leadership.

Roles and responsibilities are assigned by senior management, and this offers the opportunity for individuals to provide their own leadership in their specific areas.  

[18:15] 5.2 Policy – The definition of Policy in ISO Standards is:

The overall intentions and direction of the organisation, expressed by senior management.  A policy exists to govern the behaviour of an organisation and its employees in order to provide the best outcomes.  It also provides the basis for the establishment of objectives.  It does not explain how the policy is to be delivered through individual tasks.  This may not be a detail for top management.

What’s the requirement?:

Top management must ensure its appropriate to the purpose and context of the organization and supports its strategic direction

It’s not simply just a piece of paper to sign once a year.

[19:25] 5.3 Organizational roles, responsibilities and authorities – What does the Standard say:

 ‘Top management shall ensure that responsibilities and authorities for relevant roles are assigned, communicated and understood within the organization’

What does this actually mean?:

• Ensuring the Management system conforms to your ISO Standard(s)
• Ensuring processes deliver desired results
• Performance reporting including opportunities for improvement
• Promotion of customer focus
• Ensuring integrity of the management system through change and continual improvement

[21:30] Leadership in practice – Ian recounts an experience where senior management did regular safety checks in an organisation he worked with previously.

Senior Management took an hour out each month to do a floor walk and actually talk to those on the ground floor to ask them about risk, equipment and just generally get a feel for how everything really worked.

In turn, they were challenged by their staff on safe working systems and this proper conversation led to better understanding on both parts. The staff got to see their Senior Management genuinely care about their work and well-being, and Senior Management got much needed insight into the actual day-to-day activities and see first hand where improvements could be made.

Those familiar with ISO 45001 will know that worker participation is a requirement of the Standard, but there’s no reason why you can’t apply this to other Standards.

If you’d like to book a demo for the isologyhub, simply contact us and we’d be happy to give you a tour.

We’d love to hear your views and comments about the ISO Show, here’s how:

• Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
• Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help and we read each one.

Subscribe to keep up-to-date with our latest episodes:

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With the pandemic being the driving force behind more remote working than ever before, health and safety professionals are becoming increasingly tech-savvy.  All evidence points to them increasing their reliance on Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions to keep on top of H&S compliance and the ever-changing risks that are presenting themselves to businesses the world over.

Companies such as Riskex offer many software solutions to make Health and Safety Professionals’ lives easier, by streamlining compliance processes, gathering better safety data and providing total visibility on the performance of risk management. As a result, they keep a keen eye on new technology being adopted by the H&S sector.

Mel is joined by James Sharp, Chief Technical Officer at Riskex, to explain the top 10 emerging Software as a Solution trends in Health and Safety.  

You’ll learn

• Who are Riskex?
• Why are people leaning towards SaaS?  
• What are the top 10 emerging SaaS trends in health and safety?
• What solutions do Riskex provide?

Resources

• Riskex
• AssessNET
• ISO 45001

In this episode, we talk about:

[01:40] An introduction to Riskex and James Sharp’s role as Chief Technical Officer there.

[02:51] What is AssessNET? AssessNET is an online Health and Safety / Risk Management System designed to help streamline compliance processes and make gathering data much easier.  

[04:00] Riskex have been certified to a number of ISO Standards, including ISO 18001 (Prior Health and Safety Standard, now certifying to the latest version, ISO 45001), ISO 27001 (Information Security) and ISO 9001 (Quality Management)

[06:20] Software as a Service became very popular during Covid, as business became very fragmented and were looking for solutions that could be rolled out across multiple sites. Riskex also created their own track and trace system based on established software they were already offering – helping businesses manage Covid safely.

[08:40] Trend #1 – Artificial Intelligence – Artificial learning is all around us and with vast volumes of data being collected by safety management platforms.   AI allows decision engines to predict and provide guidance based on key trends or established KPI’s. For example, if accident rates were to increase but at the same time risk levels have been reducing, it could soon highlight this trend and look at other surrounding data or previous trends to establish a pattern.  This will lead to a more pro-active approach to reporting and subsequent decision-making.

[10:35] Trend #2 – API Connectivity – Providing an open API platform will allow businesses to integrate internal systems and external services to digest data. As more organisations adopt Cloud solutions, connectivity between platforms has become increasingly important. With a robust API offering, multiple business services can interact with ease and become part of the safety management space, without incurring significant cost or time. 

[11:50] Trend #3 – Low-Code Optimisation – Developing generic components within software to allow for quicker builds, implementations and tailoring requests. As stand-alone and generic component development increases, solutions can offer more flexibility and self-serve options to the end user to assist them with aligning platforms with their specific processes.

[13:30] Trend #4 – Mobile Optimisation – More and more end-users are accessing health and safety software via their mobiles but for various reasons, are not always able to use native apps (installed on the device). Therefore, health and safety software platforms need to adapt use on multiple devices, without the loss of features.

[14:45] Trend #5 – Vertical SaaS – Configuring EHS Software to align with the specific risks, terminology and processes that are pertinent to a given sector. As systems continue to grow in terms of sophistication and the ability to customise, so does the need to ensure that they remain User-friendly.  A key factor to consider is that each industry has its own set of industry codes of practice, regulations, hazards and risks – and EHS systems need to be designed with these in mind.

[15:50] Trend #6 – White Labelling – Integrating 3rd party EHS platforms into a client’s corporate brand identity. When it comes to optimising User engagement and embedding technology effectively into business operations, it is important that the look and feel of the system interface is aligned with an organisations branding, company values and mission to create a more cohesive User experience. Riskex have embraced this by offering ‘FreshNet’ to clients, which can be tailored and aligned with clients existing branding.

[17:10] Trend #7 – Centralised Analytics (BI) – Robust Health and Safety management systems rely on an abundance of performance data arising from core processes – Risk Assessments, Audits, Contractor Governance, Incident Management and so on. The sheer volume of information generated by these processes can provide a wealth of positive opportunities to improve safety outcomes, if analysed correctly – which is where BI platforms come in to help provide an overall picture of risk performance management.

[19:40] Trend #8 – Micro-SaaS – Deploying discreet elements of a SaaS platform to work as standalone entities to fit a specific customer requirement. Modular-based solutions or smaller SaaS platforms can meet the needs of those organisations that may only require a specific feature, not necessarily a holistic service.

[20:30] Trend #9 – Machine Learning – This is a subset of AI, machine learning learns as it goes, picking up trends and offering insights for consideration.

[21:27] Trend #10 – Customer Experience – Customer Experience, in terms of both usability and service will outshine complex offerings. As SaaS becoming commonplace from both consumer and commercial perspectives, User’s expectations regarding Customer Experience are growing sharply when they are looking to make technology purchase decisions. Successful EHS SaaS vendors put significant focus and investment in optimising the Customer Experience, both in terms of interface and functionality, to reduce the barriers to adoption by focusing on how Users interact with their solutions.

[28:00] Businesses usually have a very limited Health and Safety resource. SaaS solutions enables informed decisions to be made despite a lack of human resources available.   

You can find out more about Riskex via their website. Don’t forget to check out their Health and Safety Management software – AssessNET

We’d love to hear your views and comments about the ISO Show, here’s how:

• Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
• Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help and we read each one.

Subscribe to keep up-to-date with our latest episodes:

Stitcher | Spotify | YouTube | iTunes | Soundcloud

This episode is the final part of our 3-part series on Management Review, and this time Mel is joined by Rachel Churchman to explain how to best conduct Management Reviews and what’s best to include in them.

Rachel Churchman is a Managing Consultant at Blackmores where she assists clients to implement, maintain and continually improve their UKAS certified ISO Management Systems.

Mel and Rachel discuss the different ways to conduct a Management Review, how to improve the Management Review process, and who should be involved in your Management Review.

You’ll learn

• The purpose of a Management Review.
• Different ways to approach your Management Review.
• The importance of using data.
• Who you should involve in your Management Review.
• How to deal with non-conformities and corrective opportunities.

Resources

• isology Hub
• Blackmores

In this episode, we talk about:

[07:30] The purpose of a Management Review.

[11:15] The Management Review carried out at Blackmores and the issues we came across.

[13:06] The ways Covid has shifted from being viewed as a risk to an opportunity.

[14:14] The importance of reviewing your company’s subscriptions in your Management Review.

[15:30] The benefits of involving more people in your Management Review.

[17:52] Why data analysis is so essential in a Management Review.

[22:35] The importance of considering your outputs as well as your inputs in your Management Review.

[24:47] Areas you should monitor and measure in your Management Review.

[30:53] The most beneficial ways to review your objectives.

[34:43] How to deal with non-conformities and corrective opportunities at Management Review.

[37:20] Types of resources you should review in your Management Review.

[41:50] Our top tips for Management Review.

[47:24] The three different ways to conduct a Management Review and the benefits of each one.

For members of the isologyhub, we have a few Management Review templates available for download

We’d love to hear your views and comments about the ISO Show, here’s how:

• Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
• Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help and we read each one.

Subscribe to keep up-to-date with our latest episodes:

Stitcher | Spotify | YouTube |iTunes | Soundcloud

This week Mel and Darren delve into the different factors that can impact on workers Mental Health:

Aspects of how work is organised:

Remote and isolated work

• Working in locations that are far from home, family, friends and usual support networks
• Working alone in non-remote locations without social/human interaction
• Working in private homes

Workload and work pace

• Work overload or underload
• High levels of time pressure
• Continually subject to deadlines
• Machine pacing
• High level of repetitive work

Working hours and schedule

• Lack of variety of work
• Shift work
• Inflexible work schedules
• Unpredictable hours
• Long or unsociable hours
• Fragmented work or work that is not meaningful
• Continual requirements to complete work at short notice

Job security and precarious work

• Uncertainty regarding work availability, including work without set hours
• Possibility of redundancy or temporary loss of work with reduced pay
• Low-paid or insecure employment, including non-standard employment
• Working in situations that are not properly covered or protected by labour law or social protection

Social Factors at work:

Interpersonal relationships

• Poor communication, including poor information sharing
• Poor relationships between managers or others that workers interact with
• Interpersonal conflict
• Harassment, bullying, victimization
• Lack of social support
• Unequal power relationships between dominant and non-dominant groups of workers
• Social or physical isolation

Leadership

• Lack of clear vision and objectives
• Management style unsuited to the nature of the work and its demand
• Failing to listen or only casually listening to complaints and suggestions
• Withholding information
• Providing inadequate communication and support
• Lack of accountability
• Lack of fairness
• Inconsistent and poor decision-making practices
• Abuse or misuse of power

Organizational/workgroup culture

• Poor communication
• Low levels of support for problem-solving and personal development
• Lack of definition of, or agreement on, organisational objectives
• Inconsistent and untimely application of policies and procedures, unfair decision-making
• Recognition and reward
• Imbalance between workers’ effort and formal and informal recognition and reward
• Lack of appropriate acknowledgement and appreciation of workers’ efforts in a fair and timely manner

Career development

• Career stagnation and uncertainty, under-promotion or over-promotion, lack of opportunity for skill development

Support

• Lack of support from supervisors and co-workers
• Lack of access to support services
• Lack of information/training to support work performance

Supervision

• Lack of constructive performance feedback and evaluation processes
• Lack of encouragement/acknowledgement
• Lack of communication
• Lack of shared organisational vision and clear objectives
• Lack of support and/or resources to facilitate improvements in performance
• Lack of fairness
• Misuse of digital surveillance

Civility and respect

• Lack of trust, honesty, respect, civility and fairness
• Lack of respect and consideration in interactions among workers, as well as with customers, clients and the public

Work/life balance

• Work tasks, roles, schedules or expectations that cause workers to continue working in their own time
• Conflicting demands of work and home
• Work that impacts the workers’ ability to recover

Violence at work

• Incidents involving an explicit or implicit challenge to health, safety or well-being at work; violence can be internal, external or client initiated, e.g.:
• Abuse
• Threats
• Assault (physical, verbal or sexual)
• Gender-based violence

Harassment

Unwanted, offensive, intimidating behaviours (sexual or non-sexual in nature) which relate to one or more specific characteristic of the targeted individual, e.g.

• Race
• Gender identity
• Religion or belief
• Sexual orientation
• Disability
• Age

Bullying and victimization

Repeated (more than once) unreasonable behaviours which can present a risk to health, safety and well-being at work; behaviours can be overt or covert, e.g.

• Social or physical isolation
• Assigning meaningless or unfavourable tasks
• Name-calling, insults and intimidation
• Undermining behaviour
• Undue public criticism
• Withholding information or resources critical for one’s job
• Malicious rumours or gossiping
• Assigning impossible deadlines

Work environment, equipment and hazardous tasks

Work environment, equipment and hazardous tasks

• Inadequate equipment availability, suitability, reliability, maintenance or repair
• Poor workplace conditions such as lack of space, poor lighting and excessive noise
• Lack of the necessary tools, equipment or other resources to complete work tasks
• Working in extreme conditions or situations
• Working in unstable environments such as conflict zones

How can we identify psychological hazards in our workplaces?

There are several ways that the organization can identify psychosocial hazards, this can include (but not limited to):

• Through reviews of job descriptions
• Analysing tasks, schedules and locations
• Consulting with workers, clients and other interested parties
• Analysing performance evaluations, standardized questionnaires, audits, etc.

Further Resource:

Download a copy of our ISO 45003 Whitepaper here:

We’d love to hear your views and comments about the ISO Show, here’s how:

• Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
• Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help, and we read each one.

The Importance of Mental Health:

• Mental health can influence how we think and feel about ourselves and others as well as we interpret events.
• It affects our capacity to learn, communicate and to form, sustain and end relationships, influencing our ability to cope with change, transition and life events
• Good mental health is as important as good physical health to our life and wellbeing
• Work plays an important part in our health (both physical and mental). People who are in work are, overall, healthier and happier. But sometimes work can have a negative impact on our health
• At work we should aim to create an environment which fosters good mental health and eliminates or minimises a work environment which can have a negative impact on mental health.

Who’s most at risk?

Identification of who could be harmed or at risk of harm psychologically can be complex, with varying factors, including (but not limited to):

• Age
• Personality and psychosocial factors
• Sleep
• Medical condition of oneself or other(s) close to the individual
• The activity – type, frequency and duration
• Relationships (work and non-work)
• Financial
• Lifestyle

There is no single way to manage and reduce stress, what works for one person, may not work for another.

What are the negative outcomes for employees?

• Poor health and associated conditions
• Cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal disorders, diabetes, anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, and associated health behaviours
• Substance abuse, unhealthy eating
• Reduction in job satisfaction, commitment, and productivity

What are negative outcomes for the organisation?

• Includes increased costs due to absence from work
• Turnover
• Reduced turnover or service quality
• Increased recruitment and retraining costs
• Workplace investigations and litigation
• Damage to the organisation’s reputation

If we get mental health right – what’s the upside?

• Improved job satisfaction
• Improved worker engagement
• Increased productivity
• Increased innovation
• Organisational sustainability can be achieved

What is ISO 45003?

ISO 45003 has been published to provide guidance on the management of psychosocial risks and promoting well-being at work. Intended to be used together with ISO 45001 as part of an occupational health and safety (OH&S) management system, the guidelines are suitable for all sectors and types of organisations.

It defines Psychosocial risk as ‘combination of the likelihood of occurrence of exposure to work-related hazard(s) of a psychosocial nature and the severity of injury that can be caused by these hazard(s)’.

ISO 45003 is a guidance standard only. It is intended to complement the requirements in ISO 45001 and guide organisations on how to address OH&S issues relating to psychological health within their general OH&S management system.

What are the aims?

Therefore, it is critically important for the organisation to eliminate hazards and minimise OH&S risks by taking effective preventive and protective measures, which include measures to manage psychosocial risks. Psychosocial hazards are increasingly recognized as major challenges to health, safety, and well-being at work.

What are the psychosocial hazards?

• Psychosocial hazards relate to how work is organized, social factors at work and aspects of the work environment, equipment, and hazardous tasks.
• Psychosocial hazards can be present in all organisations and sectors, and from all kinds of work tasks, equipment, and employment arrangements.
• Psychosocial risk relates to the potential of these types of hazards to cause several types of outcomes on individual health and safety, well-being and on organisational performance and sustainability.
• It is important that psychosocial risks are managed in a manner consistent with other OH&S risks, through an OH&S management system.

What are the signs of exposure to Psychosocial risk?

• Changes in behaviour
• Social isolation or withdrawal, refusing offers of help or neglecting personal well-being needs
• Increased absence from work or coming to work when ill
• Lack of engagement
• Reduced energy
• High staff turnover
• Low quality performance or failure to complete tasks/assignments on time (presenteeism)
• Reduced desire to work with others
• Conflicts, lack of willingness to co-operate, and bullying
• Increased frequency of incidents or errors

What are the considerations in risk assessments?

At work, many situations (basic through to complex) are risk assessed, however, many assessments fail in relation to causes of psychological problems.

• Is the work the issue, or is it perceived that the work is causing or making a situation worse?
• The actual cause may be different or a combination of factors, inside and outside of work.
• The HSE defines stress as ‘the adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them’, and states:

Every employer has a legal duty to assess and protect employees from work-related stress under the Management of Health and Safety Regulations 1999.

• Stress is a major cause of sickness absence in the workplace and costs over £5 billion a year in Great Britain.

How does ISO 45003 support ISO 45001?

It is recognised that psychological health, safety and well-being are not always fully addressed within OH&S management. The standard is designed to help organisations better understand and address these aspects of OH&S management so that their system covers all aspects of health and safety, not just those that

Further Resource

Download a copy of our ISO 45003 Whitepaper here:

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Andy Pavlovic is the Compliance director at Maris. Maris is certified to four ISO standards, ISO 9001 for quality, ISO 14001 for environmental management, ISO 45001 for health and safety, and ISO 37001 for anti-bribery standards. He manages and maintains all of these ISO standards for Maris and makes sure that the company upholds these standards across the board.

This episode, Andy Pavlovic is here to share with me what he’s learnt from his years working as Maris’s compliance director and overseeing the implementation of four different ISO standards.

Andy speaks about how ISO standards enable Maris to maintain consistency across the company in the quality of their work, their health and safety procedures, and their environmental impact.

He explains how implementing standards allow organisations to be scalable and how having multiple standards doesn’t necessarily mean spending more time on them.

With ISO 37001 being a relatively new standard, he explains the value following this standard has not only for the ethos of Maris but also to the commercial side of his business.

Finally, he explains how Maris keeps their employees compliant with their standards and what the key benefits of having an integrated management system are…

Website: https://www.maris.co.uk/

Linkedin:

You’ll learn

• How ISO standards allow organisations to be scalable.
• Why implementing the correct ISO standards is even more important than ever during COVID times.
• The importance of choosing the right systems for your organisation.
• How to maintain consistent adherence to standards across your company over long time periods.
• The best ways to train your staff to be compliant with new ISO standards.
• The benefits of having an integrated management system when dealing with multiple ISO standards.

Resources

• Blackmores

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:32] Who Andy Pavlovic is and the different ISO standards that Maris are certified with.

[01:48] Andy’s experience working with ISO standards.

[02:18] What Maris does and the industries they work in.

[03:05] Andy’s ISO responsibilities as the Compliance Director.

[04:00] How ISO standards work across different cultures and the importance of having these in place.

[05:12] How Andy manages four different ISO standards, and how having these standards enable companies to be scalable.

[08:07] The importance of organisations accepting standards as part of their culture.

[09:52] The importance of giving new employees a proper formal induction and what this process looks like.

[11:52] The commercial advantages of having ISO standards and how this has helped Maris win new business during the COVID pandemic.

[13:34] What the benefits of having an integrated management system are.

[15:16] Advice Andy has for anybody who is looking to implement ISO standards.

[16:45] Andy’s book recommendation to anyone looking for self-growth.

[18:19] The importance of having someone with the right expertise in house when implementing ISO procedures.

[19:14] How to get in touch with Maris or Andy himself.

If you need assistance with implementing ISO 14001, ISO 9001, ISO 45001 or ISO 37001 – Contact us!

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Today’s Guest

Trevor Jennings is a Risk Manager with the Corporate Real Estate Department at Lloyd’s of London. He works to provide client facing advice and support on all matters of risk, excluding financial and contractual risk, and to ensure health and safety is co-ordinated across all building users within Lloyd’s UK and overseas premises.

« It’s steps at a time that will get you through to the certification aspect. »
                                             – Trevor Jennings

Picture this: An organization has set effective environmental, health, and safety standards for their company. Worker participation is high and the leadership is flourishing. Sounds marvelous, don’t you think? Tune in to this episode to learn from a man who has made this happen for the world’s specialist insurance and reinsurance market. Trevor Jennings speaks about his journey to implementing environmental standards (ISO 14001), health and safety standards OHSAS (18001), and his experience with the migration to the latest health and safety standard ISO 45001. He details the main advantages of having an ISO compliant health and safety system in place and the key factors that led to Lloyd’s success, including employee engagement groups to foster worker participation. Trevor divulges the top environmental factors that Lloyds is focusing on and how it affects their bottom line, as well as his top tip for anyone who is looking to implement ISO 14001 or ISO 45001.

Website: https://www.lloyds.com/about-lloyds

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-jennings-msc-cmiosh-44917b37/

You’ll learn

• What Lloyd’s is, what it provides, and what Trevor’s role is
• How Trevor got started at Lloyd’s and how OHSAS 18001/ISO 45001  and ISO14001 got implemented
• The main advantages of having a health and safety system in place compliant to OHSAS 18001/ISO 45001/
• Why timing, worker participation, and leadership is key for Lloyd’s success
• The top environmental factors that Lloyds is focusing on and how it affects their bottom line
• How Lloyd’s is working on a Better Working Environment initiative
• The benefits of employee engagement groups
• How Lloyd’s manages suppliers
• Trevor’s top tip for implementing ISO14001 or ISO45001

Resources

• ISO Support Plan
• ISO Elearning
• ISO Steps to Success
• Fast After 50 by Joe Friel

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:51] What is Lloyd’s and what is Trevor’s role?

[03:36] Something not many people know about Trevor

[05:10] How Trevor got started at Lloyd’s of london

[07:34] The main advantages of having a health and safety system in place compliant to 18001

[08:44] Facing the challenge of implementing 14001

[12:12] The Health, Safety, and Environmental Coordination Group

[13:42] Energy is at the top of the list of targets to focus on

[14:54] The effect on the bottom line of operations

[16:52] The migration of OHSAS 18001 to ISO 45001

[21:24] Tips for organizations looking to implement ISO 14001 or ISO 45001

[23:48] If you could gift a book to somebody, which would you choose and why?

Need assistance with either ISO 14001 or ISO 45001? – Contact us!

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• Share the ISO Show on twitter or Linkedin
• Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help and we read each one.

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The third and final episode in our ISO 45001 Steps to Success Podcast Series covers launching and demonstrating compliance in preparation for an assessment.  Paul Robinson, Managing Consultant at Blackmores shares hints and tips for the final stages of implementing your Health and Safety System.

How to launch your ISO 45001 Health and Safety System

Prior to the launch, take a breath, and step back to the original ISO 45001 Gap Analysis findings and revisit all the key points to ensure that everything is in place prior to the launch. You need to be confident that you have covered Health and Safety from all angles to drive forward a robust Health and Safety System.

It’s important to draw a line in the sand, and move forward with a positive approach to Health and Safety as this will be the catalyst to initiating a positive Health and Safety Culture. Here are a few tips to consider for the launch:-

• Cascaded message from Senior Management i.e. email from the CEO, top
• Engaging your Communications/Marketing Teams’ (if you have one) with executing a Communications Plan i.e. Posters/screensavers
• Establishing effective mechanisms for communicating at all levels i.e. lunch and learn awareness sessions, Toolbox talks, even information sent with a Payslip has been known to grab attention.
• Health and Safety inductions for new and existing employees.
• On-site safety notices/instructions for employees and other stakeholders visiting the company premises i.e. clients/suppliers.
• Clear communication regarding how employees play a role in driving continual improvement
• Promote the protection of health, well-being and safety

How to use ISO 45001 to meet HSE requirements

The Health and Safety Executive are there for a very good reason, to promote the safety of workers in the UK.  The HSE are incredibly effective at successfully convicting companies in Great Britain – out of 554 cases, there were 493 convictions in 2017/18.

Are you confident that your organisation can demonstrate compliance to Health and Safety regulations?

ISO 45001 helps to put systems in place, so you can demonstrate compliance. Demonstrating compliance

Below are a few tips for demonstrating compliance:

• Monitor and measure the evidence of conformity to H & S regulations and your own H & S Standards (policies and procedures i.e. Risk Assessment results).
• Evaluate levels of compliance by conducting Internal Audits through an Internal Audit Programme.
• Consider a process-based approach to compliance (all processes company-wide).
• Record and retain the records of evidence i.e. Internal Audit, Risk Assessments, Legal Register to identify legal requirements and controls for compliance.
• Complete full compliance cycle of Plan-Do-Check-Act.
• Ensure Management have reviewed the inputs and outputs of the Management Review clause in ISO 45001.

For further information:

www.hse.gov.uk/

An Introduction to ISO 45001 webinar

ISO 45001 Steps to Success

OHSAS 18001 to ISO 45001 Migration support

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How to create a Health and Safety System

Are you aware of the potential penalties for Health and Safety breaches? The fines vary depending on the severity of the issue i.e. leaving a ladder in front of a fire exit could be a £20,000 fine or an issue concerning your air-conditioning system i.e. Legionella, could face fines between £2.4 million to £10 million. Manslaughter cases in the UK have resulted in fines up to £20 million.  This will not only put a dent in your profit margin, but for serious breaches, could easily put some organisations out of business.

In episode two of the ISO 45001 Steps to Success Podcast series on The ISO Show, Paul Robinson provides tips on where to begin with identifying, understanding and addressing your Health and Safety obligations and how to create a H & S Manual compliant to legal requirements and ISO 45001.

As a starting point, you will need to identify the various Health and Safety acts and regulations available on the official home of UK legislation www.legislation.gov.uk.  At Blackmores we pull together all the applicable legislation, regulations and ‘other’ requirements for you into a ‘Legal Register’ which provides links to the legal requirements, a summary of the regulations, and how you can comply with the requirements.

The net stage is to define the scope.  What can you directly control within your business and what is outside your control? Where are the main risks? Where do you need to focus to reduce risk to your employees and stakeholders?

Many people wonder what is actually contained within a Health and Safety System. 

Typically organisations would have a Health and Safety Manual which would contain strategic and operational controls to prove that the H & S System is working effectively :-

• Scope and boundaries of the H & S System
• H & S Policy Statement – Endorse commitment from the leadership
• H & S Objectives
• H & S documents to support legal compliance i.e. Legal register, procedures to meet legal requirements i.e. COSH.
• H & S Procedure for risk management and monitoring and measuring the results
• H & S Procedures i.e. Manual Handling Procedure, DSE Procedure.
• H & S Records i.e. completed Risk Assessment Reports, Accident/near miss reports, Corrective Action results and Internal Audit reports.

Please note this is not an exhaustive list of all the documentation, but hopefully will give you a flavour of some of the main documents and give you an idea on how you can structure your H & S System.

The key to creating a successful H & S Manual is keeping it as simple and accessible as possible – don’t allow any excuses for not being able to access or understand your Health and Safety controls.

To find out about the next stage of implementing ISO 45001 – communication and compliance, join us for the third and final episode of the ISO Show series on ISO 45001 Steps to Success.

For further information:

www.legislation.gov.uk

www.hse.gov.uk/

Blackmores ISO 45001 Steps to Success

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Sadly, everyday thousands of lives are lost due to work related accidents.  These are deaths that could and should have been prevented.  Here are some sobering facts from ilo.org

• 1 worker dies every 15 seconds
• 153 workers have accidents every 15 seconds
• 2.3 million deaths across the globe every year

So what can be done to reduce workplace-related accidents and injuries?  Well over 70 countries have been involved in the creation of an internationally recognised standard of ‘Best Practice’ – ISO 45001:2018 to address the situation.

But how do businesses put this into practice in ‘real life’ businesses?  How can the standard be interpreted so businesses understand the logic, and reasoning behind the standard, and turn this into clear action points?

Paul Robinson, Managing consultant at Blackmores,  has over a decade of experience of implementing ISO Standards at Blackmores, joins us for this weeks’ ISO Show Podcast.  Paul interprets the ISO ‘Speak’ and shares a ‘Masterclass’ in implementing ISO 45001.  The start of a three part series on ISO 45001 Steps to Success, in this episode Paul begins by sharing knowledge on many aspects of Health and Safety, including:-

• Where are the main weaknesses in businesses in relation to Health and Safety?
• Why monitor and measure your health and safety performance?
• No need to reinvent the wheel – how can ISO 45001 be integrated into your day-to-day operations? How can you get all employees involved?
• What to expect in an ISO 45001 Gap Analysis report, who needs to be available?
• Why we need the ears and eyes of the business to help understand what the safety culture is and establish how engaged the management is in driving health and safety performance.

All of this is aligned back to the requirements of the standard and existing processes (on average this tends to be approximately 60% of the requirements of ISO 45001).   Once this is done, we can then understand the timescales and resources needed to move towards the completion of the H & S System and assessment date.

From an internal perspective we need to understand the SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and threats). In a more broader sense (externally related), we need to understand other influencing factors which is typically via a PESTEL exercise (understanding the Political, Economical, Social, Technological, Environmental/Ethical and Legal aspects affecting your business).

Paul provides examples of the types of issues that are deduced at the planning stage of a project, and helps to understand how these issues can be used to set objectives and strategy for Health and Safety improvements, which typically covers:-

• Understanding and addressing issues (internal and external)
• Understanding the needs of interested parties
• Setting KPI’s
• Assigning roles, responsibilities and accountabilities – what can and cannot be delegated?
• Driving commitment to Health and Safety
• How to consult with ‘workers’ and gain their participation – a key focus of ISO 45001
• The importance of driving a positive Health and Safety Culture

Click HERE for further information on ISO 45001 steps to success.

Or check out our ISO 45001 Migration webinar if you are already certified to OHSAS 18001 and you need to upgrade your Health and Safety Systems.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the ISO Show so you don’t miss the episode 2 in this ISO 45001 Steps to Success Series.  In the next episode we share tips on creating a Health and Safety System compliant with ISO 45001:2018. We look forward to catching you on the next ISO Show.

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• Share the ISO Show on twitter or Linkedin
• Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one.
• Also available on Spotify

What business benefits are there in implementing ISO45001

Over 6000* people die each day from work-related accidents or diseases – that’s over 2.3 million* every year.

Additionally, there are some 340 million* occupational accidents, many of these resulting in extended absences from work.

• Diseases related to work cause the most deaths among workers. Hazardous substances alone are estimated to cause 651,279 deaths a year.
• The construction industry has a disproportionately high rate of recorded accidents.
• Younger and older workers are particularly vulnerable. The ageing population in developed countries means that an increasing number of older persons are working and need special consideration.

* source: International Labour Organisation

With effective and robust processes in place, many organisations can mitigate and / or prevent such incidents.

ISO 45001:2018 sets the framework for establishing, implementing, and maintaining an occupational health and safety (OH&S) management system, managing OH&S risks and opportunities. With ISO45001 being based on the high-level structure for all management systems, an organisation can combine systems with other standards e.g. ISO9001 and ISO14001.

ISO45001 is designed to prevent work-related injury and ill-health and to provide safe and healthy workplaces. Ultimately, its aim is to promote and protect the physical and mental health of workers, a responsibility held by any organisation.

Being an international standard, ISO45001 crosses all boundaries; geographic, political, economic, commercial and social. So, whether large or small, trading locally, nationally or internationally, ISO45001 sets the benchmark.

Good safety and health management systems and cultures help organisation to:

• Prevent injury, illness and death
• Improve reputation, resilience and results

Benefits can include:

• Improve ability to respond to regulatory compliance issues
• Improve identification of hazards and risks
• Reduce the overall costs of incidents
• Reduce downtime and the costs of disruption to operations
• Reducing the cost of insurance premiums
• Reducing absenteeism and employee turnover rates

Contact Blackmores today for more information.

Unfortunately, you can’t acquire a health and safety culture at work at the flick of a switch. A positive safety culture is about having positive values, attitudes, competencies and behaviour from employees and leaders from all levels. It takes commitment and dedication across the entire workforce.

What is a health and safety culture at work? And how do you ‘get’ one?

The new ISO 45001:2018 now includes the requirement ‘Leadership and Commitment’ (5.1), which describes the aims to develop, lead and promote a Health and Safety culture that involves all employees on the following:

• Regular communications concerning health and safety matters – Toolbox talks, intranet and meetings
• Protecting your workers – do you provide PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) i.e. high visibility jacket
• Provide a health and safety induction – make employees aware of your company health and safety controls i.e. first aider and fire drills
• Consider support for mental health issues with healthcare specialists
• Ensure relevant controls are in place i.e. lone worker and DSE Procedures
• Establish a health and safety steering group / committee to take the lead and demonstrate commitment.

Interested in how ISO 45001 can help you further with your workplace health and safety? We have a free webinar available to watch: An Introduction to ISO 45001.

If you would like more information – contact us today!

What is a Risk Assessment?

A Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (HIRA) is simply a careful examination of what, in your line of work, could cause harm to people so that you may weigh up whether you have taken enough precautions or need to do more to prevent harm.

The aim is to ensure that no one gets hurt or becomes ill, as accidents and sickness can ruin lives and affects your business if output is lost, machinery is damaged, insurance costs increase or result in going to court.

You are legally required to assess the risks present in your workplace.

Some assessments of the relationship between hazard and risk are very precise, based on numerical assignments of values which are calculated from detailed considerations of engineering and other disciplines, other risk assessments may be more task orientated such as Display Screen Equipment (DSE) risk assessments.

The important things you need to decide are whether a hazard is significant and whether you have it covered by satisfactory precautions to ensure the risk is minimised. This needs to be checked when you assess the risks. For example, electricity can kill but the risk of it doing so in an office setting is unlikely, provided that ‘live’ components are insulated and metal casings properly earthed.

So how should you assess the risks in your workplace? HSE guidance promoted the following:

5 Step Approach to Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment:

Step 1: Look for Hazards

Walk around your workplace and look for what could reasonably be expected to cause harm, not the trivial things but rather concentrate on significant hazards. Also ask your employees what they think and if they’ve noticed anything that you may not find immediately obvious.

Step 2: Decide who might be harmed, and how

This can include young workers, trainees, non-English speakers, cleaners, visitors, contractors, maintenance workers, members of the public or people you share your workplace with.

Step 3: Evaluate the risks and decide if current precautions are adequate or need improvement

When considering whether current precautions are adequate also consider if the remaining risk is tolerable or intolerable. If it’s intolerable than you need to re-evaluate the precautions and improve until the remaining risk is minimised.

Ask yourself, have you done everything required by law? But don’t stop there – your real aim is to minimise risk and to do so you may need to add further precautions.

Step 4: Record your findings

If you have more than five employees you must record the ‘Significant findings’ of your assessment, this means writing down the significant hazards and conclusions.

An example of this may be: ‘Electrical installations: insulation and earthing regularly checked and working as intended.

Your employees must also be informed of these findings.

Step 5: Review your assessment and revise it if necessary

Your business will inevitably evolve and as new equipment and procedures are introduced so too will new risks. When a significant change has been made, update the Risk Assessment as necessary. Do not do this for every trivial change.

It’s recommended that an annual Risk Assessment is conducted as a minimum to ensure that your business is as up-to-date as possible.

If you are looking for any assistance with Hazard Identification and Risk Assessments within your organisation, we may be able to help. Contact us on: enquiries@blackmoresuk.com

Contractors and Outsourcing

There is tighter control and requirements for an organisation to ensure that its outsourced processes are defined and controlled. When outsourced products and/or services supplied are under the control of the organization, supplier and contractor risk must be managed effectively. Organisations cannot contract out the risk.

Outsourcing (supply chains) are becoming increasingly complex, without the right balance and awareness, management potentially have substantial risks to the business consisting of legal, financial and reputational risk. Businesses must now look beyond their own immediate health and safety issues and take into account the wider society. By thinking about its contractors and suppliers, the organisation will be able to consider the effect on their neighbours (or other interested parties).

Contractors also fall within the scope of ‘workers’; contractors should be fully engaged by organisations to enable development, planning, implementation, performance evaluation and actions for improvement of the OH&S system.

Contractor / Outsourced activities can include a multitude of services provided / undertaken on behalf of organisations, such as:

• Maintenance
• Construction
• Facilities
• Security
• Cleaning
• Waste management, etc.

As noted, organisations cannot contract out risk, when contracting with external organisations they need to ensure that hazards and associated risks are identified and controlled by both parties. Organisations must define OH&S criteria for the selection of contractors. Some factors to consider include:

• The ability of the contractor (external organisation) to meet requirements
• Competency to determine hazards, assess risks and determine controls
• Effect the outsourced process on the organisation

Once engaged with outsourced providers, the organisation should also consider and specify how the provider will co-ordinate with the organisation, including relevant controls already determined, incident / near miss reporting and interaction with other workers.

Controls are an important part of the outsourced process. Controls should be defined within the organisations systems and communicated with providers. Controls can include, contractual agreements, training, inspections and risk assessments.

Contact us today for more information!

ISO 45001, like all management system standards, now advocates the risk-based approach.

This can be seen as more proactive, however, in ‘old’ terms this was seen and managed within the ‘preventive’ process. The new requirements and structure of ISO 45001 requires risks to be evaluated and remedied, rather than being hazard control.

With the inclusion of identifying OH&S (and other) opportunities, addressing the need to act to enhance or improve the management system comes out of the risk identification, hazard identification and other activities within the organisation.

Risk is ‘the effect of uncertainty’, by reducing the effect of uncertainty we will reduce our organisation’s risk exposure.  ISO 45001 sets out to do this by requiring organisations to be clear on and understand:

• What they have to do (legal requirements).
• What they chose to do (other requirements).
• How they will do it (planning, support, and operations).
• It is being done (performance evaluation).
• How to do it better (Improvement).

Risk based thinking starts are the very beginning, when organisations are considering their context, the relevant requirements of their interested parties and the scope that the OH&S management system is to cover. Considerations should be made to both internal and external issues and the potential impact they can have on the systems and processes.

When identifying external and internal issues, and needs and expectations of interested parties, there may be a risk source that will require assessment and action as required.

As with all risk related areas, planning to address should be proportionate to the perceived level of risk identified and the objectives of the organisation.

Whilst considering all potential risks (to OH&S performance), focus should be on those hazards that are most likely to occur or have the most impact.

Reduction and / or prevention of undesired effects will help the organisation achieve its goals and objectives and continual improvement.

Awareness of these sources of risk, that have a potential to occur or a known actual event and consequence, can lead to both risk and opportunity. Identifying and determining the risks and opportunities can support the organisation in both its strategic and operational level.

Contact Blackmores today for more information.

Top Management and Leadership within ISO 45001, what does this mean / require?

 
ISO 45001 places greater emphasis on management’s ownership and commitment to the organisation’s OH&S, it is central to the standard’s effectiveness and integration.
 
Unlike OHSAS 18001, that delegated responsibility to safety personnel, ISO 45001 requires the incorporation of health and safety in the overall management system of an organisation, driving top management to have a stronger leadership role in the safety and health program.
 
Under ISO 45001 top management are required to demonstrate that they engage in key OH&S management system activities within the organisation.
 
This requirement includes the active development, leading and promoting a culture of safety at work, and protecting workers from reprisals when reporting incidents. Top management will have to demonstrate involvement rather than delegation, and top management should be seen by all workers as being actively involved and demonstrating their commitment.
 
There is a greater focus on top management to ensure that there is consultation and participation of workers (formal and informal) in the development, planning, implementation and continual improvement of the OH&S management system.

ISO 45001 and Engagement of Managers
 

With ISO 45001, the safety culture of the organisation must be supported through the engagement of management with workers and demonstrated through a top-down emphasis. Instead of providing oversight of the program, management a required to be true safety leaders. Protection of workers, as well as performance improvements, are roles of leadership under the new ISO 45001.

Elements to Encourage Management and Leadership within ISO 45001
 

Top management have the responsibility to ensure that the importance of effective OH&S management is communicated and understood by all parties and ensuring that the OH&S management system can achieve intended outcomes. This can include:
 

• Ensuring alignment of the OH&S management system with the organization’s business objectives
• Ensuring necessary resources are available
• Encouraging workers (other interested parties) to get actively involved in improving OH&S performance
• Involving everyone in OH&S decision making, promoting open discussions
• Clearly communicating that improvement and not blame is the objective

 
Clear and consistent Leadership is required. OH&S management is everyone’s business; it involves everyone, from the highest level down throughout the organisation, including temporary as well as permanent workers, visitors and neighbours. It also has to be across all areas of the organisation, departments and divisions, to ensure the development of collaborative and engaging relationships.

Contact us at Blackmores for more information on engagement and leadership in ISO 45001

Context of the organisation, what does this mean?

BS ISO 45001 Context of the organization (clause 4), covers the following:

• Understanding the organization and its context
• Understanding the needs and expectations of workers and other interested parties
• Determining the scope of the OH&S management system
• OH&S management system

It within this clause that companies will begin to look, review and assess what they do, where they are in the market place and, particularly in respect of Health and Safety who could be harmed or affected by their activities.

Understanding the organization and its context

As part of the new common structure, with ISO 45001, the organisation must look beyond their own health and safety issues and consider what the society expects from them, in regard with health and safety issues.

Determination of issues that could affect the business can be undertaken in a number of ways and will be different for each business, based on size, complexity, scope of operations, etc.

A structured approach can be through methods such as:

• SWOT (Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats), can be used by organizations to look inward at themselves
• PESTLE (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, Environmental), can be used to identify external issues that could affect the organization

These methods can also support in the identification of business objectives and improvement areas.

Understanding the needs and expectations of workers and other interested parties

Here, organizations are to determine those (relevant) interested parties that could affect or be affected by the organization and its OH&S management system, along with their needs and expectations that could become compliance (legal) obligations.

Relevant interested parties can include; staff (workers at any level), customers, legal and regulatory authorities, owners, shareholders, etc.

Also consider Contractors and Suppliers used, how work can affect others in surrounding areas e.g. neighbours, public, visitors, etc.

Some requirements / obligations will be mandatory e.g. Laws, Regulations, others agreed e.g. Contracts.

Determining the scope of the OH&S management system

Following determination of the external and internal issues and interested parties (above), the organization can then determine the scope of the OH&S management system.

There is an element of freedom and flexibility in defining the boundaries, however, it should be noted, organizations cannot:

• exclude activities, products and services that have / can impact its OH&S performance
• evade legal and other requirements

OH&S management system

The organization will determine, implement and maintain the processes required to fulfil the requirements of BS ISO 45001. These processes should be aligned and integrated throughout the organization e.g. Procurement, Operations, HR, etc. to ensure that everyone is aware and working towards the OH&S performance.

Where organizations have additional management system standard certification it may have covered some of these areas, however, a review will identify whether OH&S specific details have been determined.

If you would like to find out more – contact Blackmores today!

How is ISO 45001 aligned with other ISO standards e.g. ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and minor differences?

ISO 45001:2018 is based on Annex SL – the high-level structure that implements a common framework to all management systems, i.e. it applies a common language across all standards.

This helps to keep consistency, supports alignment of different management system standards, e.g. ISO9001, ISO14001, etc.

Organisations can find it easier to incorporate their OH&S management system into core business processes and get more involvement from senior management.

The standard(s) are written in such a way that by following clause by clause, a methodical approach is achieved.

Structure of BS ISO45001, highlighting minor difference / requirements:

4. Context of the organization

• You must look beyond your own health and safety issues and consider what society expects from you, regarding health and safety issues.
• Here we come across the term ‘workers’ identified within interested parties
• Consider use of Contractors and Suppliers, how work can affect others in surrounding areas e.g. neighbours, public, visitors, etc.

5. Leadership and worker participation

• Management / Senior Leaders endorsement of the OH&S Policy is no longer enough; they must now lead by example and demonstrate their commitment and engagement in key OH&S management activities.
• OH&S Policy now requires five specific commitments, including commitment to consultation and participation of workers
• New / enhanced requirement for Consultation and participation of workers, workers (non-managerial) – must be involved (consultation and participation), supporting improvements in processes, identification of hazards and risks.

6. Planning

• Risk-based thinking – you must demonstrate you have determined, considered, and take action to address any risks and opportunities.
• Determination of applicable legal and other requirements; this can result in identification of risks and opportunities
• As part of planning, determination and assessment of risks and opportunities should be undertaken before change implemented

7. Support

• More emphasis on competence, particularly with identification of hazards
• Communication with interested parties – internal and external; and taking into account diversity needs; ensure views of external interested parties are considered when establishing communication process

8. Operation

• Operational planning and control – eliminating hazards and reducing OH&S risks, managing change, management of procurement e.g. Contractors, outsourcing, to ensure conformity to OH&S management system
• Emergency preparedness and response to ensure you can respond to potential emergency situations; these will have been identified within Planning, or will feed back for assessment if not previously picked up

9. Performance evaluation

• Monitoring and measurement equipment (e.g. calibration) is located in section 9.1.1
• Evaluation of compliance – similar to ISO14001
• Management review; information on performance and trends includes, Incidents, consultation and participation of workers,
• Management shall communicate relevant outputs of management reviews to workers (and/or representatives)

10. Improvement

• Establishment, implementation and maintenance of process for reporting, investigating and taking action, to determine and manage incidents and nonconformities
• Involve workers, and other interested parties, in the evaluation and corrective action to eliminate root causes of incidents / nonconformities

Blackmores UK can support you in migration or implementation of ISO45001, please contact us for more information.

Consultation and Participation was imbedded within OHSAS18001, what’s the difference with ISO45001?

Consultation and Participation of workers (ISO45001, Clause 5.4), is significantly enhanced from the requirement within OHSAS18001, where this was limited to hazard identification and consultation on changes.

ISO 45001 expects occupational health and safety aspects to be fully embodied within the organisation structure, including a greater degree of employee participation in the risk identification, hazard control and development of systems. All workers should be aware of their responsibilities, and work together to meet the organisation’s health and safety goals. Everyone, including leadership, is responsible for safety.

What does Consultation and Participation imply?

• Consultation implies two-way communication, so workers (or their representatives when appropriate) can provide feedback to be considered by the organisation before taking a decision.
• Participation implies the contribution of workers (or their representatives), including non-managerial workers, to decision-making related to OH&S performance and to proposed changes.

What does the term worker mean?

• In the context of ISO 45001, ‘The Worker’ is defined as the person working under the control of the organisation, this is at all levels and includes contractors.

To facilitate the process of consultation and participation, the organisation must provide the required mechanisms, simply identified as:

• Time, training and resources
• Removal of obstacles or barriers, e.g. language, literacy or fear of reprisals

The provision of training to workers at no cost and during normal working hours could remove barriers to their participation.

Consultation and Participation of Workers in the OH&S Management System

The involvement of workers in the OH&S management system, along with the processes to support, is a key requirement for an effective management system. This involvement enables the organisation to make informed decisions and increase worker engagement.

Mechanisms can vary based on organisations, this can include,

• The inclusion all workers, in smaller organisations
• Workers’ representatives within larger organisations
• Being involved with the policy, setting objectives
• Suggestion schemes – formal and informal, along with communication on whether action is to be taken
• Focused team meetings and / or workshops
• Briefings and discussion forums, worker surveys, cross functional groups
• Review of existing arrangements and continual improvement projects
• Hazard identification and risk assessment participation to ensure appropriate working

Considerations should also take into account the methods, language and location for consultation and participation.

Worker involvement on day-to-day activities, along with those closest to the risk, provides an insight into actual issues. However, Consultation and Participation should be effective and proportionate to the organisation, not everyone is required to be involved, not every suggestion acted upon.

The organisation should determine the best and appropriate ways to implement effective consultation and participation and whether more formal mechanisms e.g. H&S committees, are required. It is important that once the mechanisms have been set up that they are supported by Management.

Making joint decisions with workers is more likely to be effective for the development, planning, implementation, performance evaluation and actions for improvement of the OH&S management system, as workers are the key interested party.

Contact Blackmores today for more information about this topic!

Already certified to OHSAS 18001, what are the next steps for migrating to ISO 45001:2018?

So the long-awaited ISO 45001:2018 standard is finally here.  If your organisation is already certified to the Health and Safety Standard, OHSAS 18001, you may be considering what the next steps are.  The good news is that if you’re already certified to ISO 9001:2015 or ISO 14001:2015 you are already half way there to migrating to ISO 45001:2018.  Why?  Because ISO 45001 is based on the new High Level Structure (Annex SL).  These are the foundations which all new ISO standards in are generally based upon.  This means that the new elements such as Context of the organisation (understanding your businesses internal and external issues), Leadership and Interested partied are also featured in ISO 45001:2018.  Fundamentally, this approach lends itself well to a risk-based standard such as ISO 45001:2015.

In terms if next steps, I’d recommend…

1. Developing a migration plan to coincide with a forthcoming OHSAS 18001 surveillance visit.  This will mean you will not necessarily need to pay for an additional visit from your certification body.  Ideally, you will need to allow a minimum of 6 months for the migration, although business with multiple sites or greater employee numbers (in excess of 100) should allow 12 months.
2. Conduct a Gap Analysis to establish how you are currently complying with ISO 45001, and understand the gaps, so that an action plan can be produced. This can be done internally, or if outsourcing, Blackmores would allow one day for an on-site visit including report writing.
3. Address the changes to the new standard – particularly in relation to Worker Participation (featured heavily in the new standard), Context of the organisation, interested partied and leadership.
4. Update the Health and Safety Management System to reflect the new changes.
5. Develop a Communication Plan to communicate the changes to employees and other ‘interested parties’ i.e. contractors, suppliers.  This can include newsletters, posters, meeting agenda’s, H & S KPI’s, Screen savers, ‘ISO 45001 Awareness Week’.
6. Conduct an Internal Audit to demonstrate how your business complies with the new standard.
7. Confirm with your Certification body the date of the migration visit to ensure that the assessor is aware that they are assessing your business against the new requirements – not the old OHSAS 18001 standard. We wouldn’t want to let all that effort go to waste now, would we?

So is that it?  Well yes, if you are happy doing the bare minimum.  However, if your company would like to embrace a culture of Health and Safety Best Practice, it is worth focusing on firmly establishing metrics to manage continual awareness and Best Practice.

If you would like to learn more – contact Blackmores today!

So why change from OHSAS 18001 to ISO 45001?

Inevitably, there is risk in the workplace, regardless of the industry, whether we like it or not.  However how businesses mitigate risk, can make the all the difference when it comes to protecting the health, safety and well-being of employees.  OHSAS 18001 has been around for 20 years, and it has taken almost that long for countries around the world to agree on what ‘Best Practice’ is when it comes to  managing health and safety in the workplace.

The long-awaited standard, includes contribution from 70 participating national bodies, and covers all the requirements of a Health and Safety Management System.  Why is this is this standard so important then?

Well you only need to look at national (UK) and international Health and Safety work related injury statistics to demonstrate that an international standard to support global improvement in health and safety preventing work-related injuries and deaths is long overdue.  Here are some of the facts:-

• Every 15 seconds, 150 workers have an accident – that’s 317 million accidents a year.
• Over 6000* people die each day from work-related accidents or diseases – that’s over 2.3 million* every year.
• Additionally, there are some 340 million* occupational accidents, many of these resulting in extended absences from work.

(source*: International Labour Organisation)

Needless to say, business in the UK and overseas have still got a long way in terms of health and safety.

Contact Blackmores today to learn more about ISO 45001

What is ISO 45001?

ISO 45001 is an International Standard that specifies requirements for an occupational health and safety (OH&S) management system, with guidance for its use, to enable an organisation to proactively improve its OH&S performance in preventing injury and ill-health.

Who can implement/use ISO 45001?

ISO 45001 is intended to be applicable to any organisation regardless of its size, type and nature. All of its requirements are intended to be integrated into an organisation’s own management processes.

We have certification to OHSAS18001, what will happen to this?

OHSAS 18001 will be withdrawn on publication of ISO 45001 and organisations currently certified to OHSAS 18001 will have a three-year period to migrate to ISO 45001.

How soon or how long do I have to migrate to ISO 45001?

Following publication of ISO 45001, certification will be available to the new standard. All organisations certified to OHSAS 18001 will be able to migrate to ISO 45001, and migration from the old to the new will be available until 3 years from the day of publication of ISO 45001.

If you would like more help understanding ISO 45001 – then contact us today!

What is ISO 45001:2018?

Occupational health and safety in the workplace is always a major concern for all organisations. Having an occupational health and safety management system will help you to protect your most important asset; your people.

ISO 45001 provides a robust set of requirements designed for improving workplace safety in organisations and supply chains, with the aim of reducing workplace injury and illness.

ISO 45001 replaces BS OHSAS 18001, the former British standard for workplace health and safety. If you are already certified to OHSAS 18001, you will have three years to migrate to the new standard.

This webinar was held on the 27th June and covers the following:-

• What is ISO 45001:2018?
• What’s the difference between ISO 45001 and OHSAS 18001?
• SWOT and PESTLE
• What are the success factors of ISO 45001?
• How Blackmores can help you to achieve ISO 45001 certification

For more information about how we can help you with ISO 45001, please contact us: enquiries@blackmoresuk.com